Under the Stars
by Bassomatic
Summary: Sequel to Under the Roses. Roy and Riza are vacationing in Resembool when they get an odd phone call summoning them back to central, where they have to handle an old enemy or do they? Royai!
1. A Little Tipsy

**Behold – the sequel!**

**By the by, if you haven't read 'Under the Roses' yet… you might want to go do that. If not, then you may have some issues understanding this one. **

**Sorry for the delay – this story gave me soooo many problems. I wrote it all out longhand in a notebook, then re-read it and decided that I absolutely hated the thing. ****Roy and Riza were way too OOC and wouldn't do a single thing I told them to (They kept having sex. Go figure.) So now I'm re-writing the whole thing. **

**And now to explain why exactly my stories are so messed up; I tend to mix bits of the manga and the anime together to create the background for them. So there's no consistency, really, and _probably_ no really big spoilers, though you can't be sure. **

**I haven't seen the end of the anime, so I really have no idea how Ed and Al get their bodies back, so just pretend that somehow they did. Fürher Bradley is no longer with us, and in my little world, Hakuro (god help us) took his place. He is semi sane in the Under the Roses Universe, however. I may throw in random elements from the manga or the anime, though, just to keep the plot afloat. So basically just be prepared for all things wildly AU. **

**And for future reference, I have no clue who killed Winry's parents in this universe. It could have been Pinako, for all I know.**

**But never fear – after this story, the next two are all done and I'm very happy with them. So once I fight my way through UtS, things should be a lot easier.**

**Please accept my most sincere apologies for the length of the author's note.**

**EDIT: Ohmaigawd I forgot line breaks! bows please forgive me!

* * *

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CHAPTER ONE: A LITTLE TIPSY

Riza Hawkeye woke suddenly to a loud banging noise. It was an indication of just how much her military training had gotten to her that she had a gun in her hand before she was even fully awake. She blinked a few times, unsure of her surroundings, before she relaxed and put the gun down. She had been taking a nap, and the banging was someone knocking on the door to her hotel room.

Riza and her commanding officer, Roy Mustang, were vacationing in Resembool, and, as a result of some confusion on the hotel manager's part, were staying in adjacent rooms connected by a door. But it wasn't this door that was being knocked on; it was the one that led to the hallway.

Groggily, Riza rolled off her bed and walked towards the door, ignoring the fact that she wasn't exactly dressed for receiving visitors; a t-shirt and a pair of short shorts that she only ever used to sleep in in warm weather. Oh well; no time to change now. She opened the door and found herself being hugged enthusiastically by Alphonse Elric.

"Al? What—"

"WE DID IT!" He squealed.

"What exactly did we do?" She still wasn't quite awake, and this whole scenario simply wasn't making sense.

"Ed and Winry! They're officially together now – Scarlett just told me!"

"Really?" She asked, wondering who this 'Scarlett' person was. He nodded, "That's wonderful!" She cried, hugging him back with enthusiasm to match his.

"What's all the shouting about?" Riza turned her head to see Roy standing in the doorway between their rooms. "Nice shorts, Lieutenant Hawkeye." To her horror, Riza found herself blushing slightly; she shook off her embarrassment and directed an icy stare at Roy.

"That door was closed for a reason, sir."

"Oh, am I interrupting something?" Riza sighed—he could be so immature.

"We were just celebrating the fact that Edward and Winry are apparently 'together' now." Roy waggled his eyebrows – how did he _do_ that?

"Ohoho! I _knew_ it was bound to happen sooner or later!" We'll just have to keep a sharp eye on them, eh?"

"Sir," Riza said simply, "Go away."

"Nooooo," Roy whined, "I want to go congratulate them!" Riza sighed.

"Fine; just give me a chance to change first – I have no intention of going out in public dressed like this."

"Why?" Roy wanted to know, "I'm sure that the general public would enjoy it very much."

"_Out_."

* * *

"Granny!" Winry yelled, tugging open the door to her house, "We're back!" She pulled Ed along with her – they were holding hands – and looked around. "Huh. She must have left."

"Well you know…" Ed pulled her towards him and slid an arm around her waist. "Until she gets back, we have the whole house to ourselves." Winry smiled, and leaned in to kiss him.

"AHA!" both Winry and Ed jumped as Roy, Riza, and Al entered the house through the still-open door. "I KNEW IT!" Before either Winry or Ed could move, Roy had lunged forward and hugged them both at once, squishing them together in the process.

"GET OFF!" Ed yelled, squirming. Roy complied (eventually) and beamed at the two of them.

"You two," he said, "are just so CUTE together! Go on, kiss! Do it!" Ed opened his mouth to say something, but Riza quickly shoved Roy into the hall closet and shut the door, effectively removing the source of his anger.

"We're very happy for you," She told Ed and Winry, smiling. Winry blushed, and Ed returned the smile. Al didn't bother with verbal congratulations; he rushed over and hugged them just as Roy had, only _he_ was considerably more welcome. Riza, not wanting to intrude, slipped into the closet and shut the door.

She flicked on the light to find Roy sitting cross-legged on the floor. Riza hesitated for a moment before following suit and sitting in front of him. He gave her a wry smile.

"Fancy seeing you here."

"I decided to let those three talk for a while." She explained, and he nodded.

"That's good."

"Why do you always have to push Ed's buttons like that?" Roy stretched, grinning.

"Because it's fun." Riza shook her head.

"One of these days he's going to get sick of it," she cautioned, "And then you're going to have a real problem." Roy just grinned again.

"Edward and I have a special relationship." Riza cocked an eyebrow. "We communicate through teasing and name-calling. It's all in fun of course. He knows it, even if certain _other_ people don't, and try to shoot me." Riza reddened.

"I'm sorry about that, sir, but if you hadn't shouted 'kiss her', everything would have turned out ok."

"Ah, but everything _did_ turn out ok." Roy replied, "Ed and Winry are together – all is right with the world, birds are chirping, flowers are blooming, etc." He said this with just a hint of bitterness in his voice, causing Riza to cock an eyebrow.

"Are you jealous of them?" He shook his head and got to his feet.

"Of course not; I have my career. I don't need anything else.

"Which is why you are something of a serial dater?" He offered her a hand, she accepted it, and he pulled her to her feet. For a dizzying moment, they were close enough to kiss. Roy snorted, completely ruining the moment.

"Those women have nothing to do with love. They aren't a distraction, so they're perfectly acceptable." He told her. "Now, if I were to find a woman that I _really_ liked – or even fell in love with – then there would be a problem."

"What would you do?" She asked, even though it was terribly unlikely that Roy Mustang would ever fall seriously in love with a single woman. He liked variety too much.

"Well, I have my career to consider. The woman would have to wait."

"Women don't like to wait." She told him. He shrugged.

"Well, I'll cross that bridge when I come to it." He said, and moved past her to listen at the door for a moment, "Ok, we've given them enough time." And with that, he opened the door and strode into the room.

"Oh, there you are." Winry said, "We were worried you'd gotten yourself locked in there."

"Actually we were hoping you had." Ed muttered. He colored when Riza raised her eyebrows at him. "I was kidding! We weren't! Being locked in a closet with Colonel Bastard isn't a fate I'd wish on my worst enemy, let alone you."

"We weren't locked in," Riza said, choosing to ignore Ed's incoherent rambling. "We were only giving you three a moment alone."

"And now that you've had it," Roy interjected, "Details, I want details!"

"About what?" Ed asked, clearly irritated.

"What happened!" Roy exclaimed, "Was there kissing involved? Any romantic declarations of love? How about—"

"If you think we're going to tell you—" Ed began hotly, but Winry cut him off.

"Well, what happened was I dragged Ed outside to that big tree and—"

"You're actually telling him?" Ed cried in dismay. Winry gave her boyfriend a long-suffering look.

"Of course, Ed." She told him slowly. "If he's curious, then why not?" And before Ed could voice another word of complaint, she finished telling Roy and Riza the entire story. Just as she was finishing the story by telling them of how Ed had kissed her (Ed had his face buried in a pillow by this time) Pinako walked through the door, arms laden with groceries. Roy, being the (hungry) gentleman that he was, immediately stood and relieved her of her burden.

"Thank you, Roy," Pinako said, allowing him to take the bag from her and set it down in the kitchen. "I see you've all been getting up-to-date on the current events. I insist that you two stay for dinner, by the way," She said, looking at Roy and Riza.

"We don't want to intrude—" Riza began, but Roy cut her off.

"Why thank you; we would love to stay for dinner!" Roy exclaimed, elbowing Riza lightly in the shoulder. "Thank you so much for the invitation!"

* * *

Not only did they end up staying for dinner, but Pinako broke out a bottle of wine afterward, and they adjourned to the living room to talk. Unfortunately for Winry and Ed, the talk inevitably turned to them. Also unfortunately, the subject of Ed was one that could keep Roy entertained for hours on end. Al went upstairs after a while, yawning, leaving the other five alone.

"And when these two were little, Trisha and Sara used to bathe them together sometimes!" Pinako said, gesturing to Winry and Ed, who were sitting together on the couch, both blushing heavily. Roy, slightly tipsy, was sent into gales of laughter by this.

"You know, I think I'm going to go to bed now." Ed said, standing up. Pinako's smile disappeared.

"And I fully expect you to stay in your own room, young man. That sleeping together stuff was fine before you two became a couple, but now it's unacceptable. Same goes for you, Winry."

"Yes ma'am." Winry said, turning, if it was possible, even redder. Roy raised an eyebrow.

"Sleeping together? Now what's this about?"

"You know, I'm actually really tired too," Winry said, before turning and bolting upstairs. Pinako chuckled.

"Oh, nothing like you're thinking, I'm sure. Winry …had a nightmare last week and slept in Ed's room. It was pure coincidence that they woke up so tangled together that you could hardly tell one from the other." This provoked another loud peal of laughter from Roy. Riza, feeling a little tipsy herself, checked her watch, and yelped.

"It's past midnight! I had no idea we'd been here that long!" She stood, and yanked on Roy's sleeve, indicating that he should do likewise. "We should definitely be getting back to the hotel." Pinako eyed them for a moment.

"Are you two married?" She asked suddenly. Riza blushed.

"No. Separate hotel rooms, of course." Pinako nodded.

"Ah. Of course."

* * *

"Tapioca is a funny word, isn't it, Lieutenant Colonel?" Roy asked, as they walked down the street. He was just drunk enough to make completely random statements, but not enough that he needed assistance walking, which was just as well, because Riza didn't know how much help she would be if he did. She giggled.

"Sir, do you have your keys?" She asked; she was always the responsible one, even when slightly tipsy. He nodded.

"Somewhere…" They reached the staircase and started to ascend, and Roy dug through his coat pockets furiously, emerging at last with the key to his room. He stumbled a little on the stairs, and Riza slipped an arm around his waist to keep him steady. He looked over at her, and grinned.

"You know, Lieutenant, you look really pretty in the moonlight." She blushed. _He must be more drunk than I thought. _

"Thank you, sir." was all she could think to say. The wine was making her lightheaded. She deposited him in front of his door, and went to wrestle with her own key. It took her a while to get the door open, and, after checking that Roy had gotten safely into his room, she entered her own.

* * *

Roy woke the next morning with a slight headache and only vague recollections of how he had gotten back to the hotel last night. He seemed to recall something about tapioca. He shook his head to clear it and immediately found that the wasn't a good idea. Shutting his eyes again and sleeping until noon, however, seemed like a very good idea, and so he decided to do just that.

_Rrrring_.

Dammit. He shut his eyes firmly, determined to ignore it.

_Rrrring._

It wasn't working.

_Rrrring._

Swearing loudly, Roy sat up and grabbed the phone. Were hotel phones even supposed to ring? His head swam for a moment, protesting his sudden movement. He waited for it to steady before he put the phone to his ear.

"Roy Mustang; make this quick – I have a hangover."

"Sir? Where the hell are you?" It was Havoc.

"I'm on vacation; I cleared it with Hakuro. Why? Is there a problem in Central?"

"Only if you call Scar showing up out of nowhere and causing mass chaos a problem." Havoc replied, "Personally, I think it is. Hey, aren't you and the Lieutenant Colonel somewhere together? She let you get drunk?"

"She got drunk too, if I remember correctly." Roy said, "Now what's this about Scar?"

"The _Lieutenant Colonel_? _Drinking_?" Havoc sounded stunned, "How much? What was it? Is she a violent drunk? I always thought she'd be a violent drunk…"

"Havoc! Scar?"

"Oh, right. Two days ago he showed up outta god-knows-where and just started doing what he does best; tracking down State Alchemists and brutally murdering them, and at an alarming rate."

"How many?"

"Seven. Seven in two days." Roy inhaled sharply.

"And what do you want me to do about it?"

"Care to cut your vacation short? Your entire jurisdiction is falling to pieces without you. More to the point; nothing's getting done without Hawkeye. Paperwork is piling up, there are riots in the streets, etc, etc."

"Riots?"

"Well, no." Havoc admitted, "But you should see the state of your desk. Covered in dust and paperwork…" Roy's lower lip trembled. His desk, his lovely mahogany desk, wasting away…

"All right." He said, "I suppose we can always finish this vacation another time. I'll go rouse Hawkeye, and we'll be on a train to Central by tonight."

"You'll do _what_ to Hawkeye?"

"DAMMIT, HAVOC—" _click_. Wisely, the other man had already hung up. Roy sighed, and ran a hand though his hair. His hangover would have to wait.

It took me forever to write this chapter. Jeez. And it was really terrible too. Please keep in mind that I've never been drunk before (a result of being incredibly underage, you see), and therefore have no clue what I'm writing about when I talk about hangovers, etc.

* * *

**I don't however, think it would be an incredibly good idea to get tipsy and then wander around town trying to find your hotel. Especially if you're around an equally tipsy Roy Mustang. Make good choices!**


	2. Sugar Coated Death Waffle

**Disclaimer: is too lazy to think of something witty to go here I don't own FMA.**

**Alas! Can it be? It is! The second chapter of Under the Stars! And you thought it would never be here, O ye of little faith! Actually I was starting to doubt it as well, being the lazy writer that I am. I must have started writing a half-dozen other fics while I was supposed to be working on this one.**

**This went well until the middle. Then it was quite like pulling teeth i.e. there was a lot of pain and spewing blood and LARGE NEEDLES.**

**Well, not really the needles so much. But there was suffering. Never have I cried so much during the writing of a fic. Hopefully chapter three will be better; if not, who knows what will happen to this story? (I will kill it in the night, that's what.)**

**In this one: Waffles, Swimming, and Head Injuries.

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CHAPTER TWO: Sugar-coated Death-waffle

* * *

_Knock knock._

"Lieutenant Colonel!" Roy called through the door connecting their rooms. He waited for a few moments for a reply, before shrugging and barging into her room.

To his amazement, she was still asleep. He stood in the doorway for a moment, wondering what to do, before crossing the room to stand next to her. She looked almost like a completely different person when she was sleeping; her hair was loose and splayed out across the pillow, and her features were completely relaxed. Roy spent a few moments looking at her, not really even comprehending what he was doing. It hit him suddenly that he found her very attractive, and he shook his head to clear it of such thoughts. They weren't allowed.

"Hawkeye," He said softly, gently shaking her shoulder. Her eyes opened, and she sat bolt upright, reaching for her gun. He grinned crookedly. "Sorry to wake you like this, but I just got a phone call from Havoc…" He proceeded to tell her of Scar and the murders in Central. She frowned.

"This is rather serious, isn't it?" She mused. It was funny how she managed to look completely professional while wearing pajamas and sitting in bed. "We had better leave right away." Roy shrugged.

"Not right away – if they had needed me all that badly, someone higher up would have called. No, we can spend today in Resembool and leave late tonight." She nodded.

"That makes sense." She glared suddenly, "But if you were planning on that all along, why did you come wake me up?" Of course, he could never admit that he had simply been curious as to what sort of pajamas she wore.

"I thought you'd want to know right away," He explained. "And also I wanted to ask what you wanted to do about breakfast."

"Breakfast?" She repeated.

"You know, breakfast; that meal you eat in the morning?" she blinked.

"Oh." She thought a moment, "Well, we could go out, or we could go to the dining area in the hotel, or I suppose we could always get room service." Roy grinned.

"Room service it is." He reached for the phone, and paused, "What do we want?" Riza sat up and leafed through the large pamphlet next to the phone, and found the menu section.

"I'm in the mood for waffles." She announced, "How about you?" He grinned, and picked up the phone.

"Lieutenant Colonel, I do believe you've just read my mind."

* * *

" Morning, Ed, morning Al." Winry muttered, rubbing her eyes. They had been up talking until past midnight last night, and had been wakened by the sun much too early for her liking. She had tried to go back to sleep after first waking, but to no avail. She'd then wandered downstairs only to fid that the two Elric brothers were having the same problem. 

"Good morning, beautiful." Ed said, standing up to give her a good-morning kiss.

"How late were you guys up last night?" Al wanted to know, "And what were you doing? Every time I ask brother, all he says is something about 'That Bastard Mustang'." Winry chuckled.

"Granny was just embarrassing Ed and I with stories from when we were little." She said, "And they had quite a lot of wine; I expect Granny won't be up for quite a while."

"Does that mean we don't get breakfast for quite a while?" Ed asked, "I'm hungry."

"Don't be silly." Winry told him, "I can cook perfectly well."

"Without getting machine grease everywhere?" Ed asked, smirking, Winry frowned, and gave him a light slap upside the head.

"If you keep talking to me like that, Edward, you won't get any breakfast." She threatened, before turning to the stove. Ed seemed to realize that she was serious, and whimpered.

"I was only kidding, Winry. You're the most pristine, grease-free person I know. Feed me?" She sighed.

"You're hopeless."

"I wonder if Roy and Riza got back to the hotel all right?" Al said, "I mean, if they were drunk and all." Ed snorted.

"I bet that bastard tried to take advantage of Hawkeye in her less-than-aware condition and got his balls shot off." Winry hit him over the head with a spatula, and continued as though he hadn't spoken.

"Probably, or else we would have heard about it. And Miss Riza was the more sober of the two, she probably got them both back to the hotel." Al nodded.

"Good. I mean, I didn't think that Roy would take advantage of her, but if they were both really drunk…." He trailed off, and Winry smiled.

"They're adults; if they want to get drunk and have- er- bad…decisions – then they can do that. But it didn't look like they were that drunk." Al nodded again.

"So they won't be very hung over?" This was a strange question.

"I don't know." Winry answered truthfully, "Probably not. Why?" Al shrugged.

"Well, we hardly ever see them, so I was wondering if they'd want to do something with us today. You don't think they mind hanging out with a bunch of kids, do you?" At this, Ed puffed out his chest.

"I," he said, "Am not a 'kid'. I happen to be nineteen years old- I'm a man!" Winry rolled her eyes.

"That's a great idea, Al." She said, "And Ed is –for once – kind of right. We're not all that young anymore. Let's call them up and see if they want to- oh, I don't know- go shopping, or swimming, or something." Al jumped to his feet.

"Swimming sounds fun! It's just getting warm enough to swim, too! I'll call." And with that, he dashed out into the hallway towards the phone. Ed looked at Winry.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Winry pointed the spatula at him.

"You had better behave." She warned.

"Or?" He asked, with a smirk.

"Or-or—" she cast around for something to blackmail him with, and found it, "Or I'll tell Roy every single embarrassing story about you that I know." She said, "And that happens to be quite a few." Ed held up his hands.

"All right, truce." He caught hold of her arm and gently pulled her closer to him. "I'll be nice."

"Good." She said, and leaned down to kiss him.

* * *

Roy had always thought that she was the type of person to eat her waffles plain. Maybe a little butter, or syrup, but nothing too fancy. He envisioned her as no-nonsense, efficient, and with somewhat simple tastes. 

The fruit-and-whipped cream-covered waffle sitting in front of her now, however, proved him to be very, very wrong.

"How can you eat that?" He asked incredulously. Her waffle was so covered in outside foodstuffs that he could no longer see the original waffle.

"Like this." She said, and neatly cut off a corner, and ate it. Roy shook his head and went back to his blueberry waffle; even _looking_ at that thing was enough to give him cavities.

_Rrrrring._

Riza looked up, puzzled. Her phone was ringing? Maybe it was Havoc? No, that was unlikely. She shrugged, and picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Good Morning, Riza!" It was Al. "I didn't wake you up, did I?"

"No; the General did, earlier this morning. We got a call from Central, Al; we have to leave tonight."

"Oh…" he sounded disappointed, "Well, I was just calling to see if you and Roy wanted to go swimming with Ed, Winry, and I later?" Riza winced; she never had been much for swimming, but it would be rude to say no.

"Let me ask the general," she said, and set the phone against her shoulder to muffle their voices. "Sir, it's Alphonse. He wants to know if we want to go swimming with them later." Roy shrugged.

"Sure, that sounds fun." He perked up, "Will it be in a swimming hole? I've always wanted to go swimming in one of those." Riza sighed.

"He wants to know if it will be in a swimming hole," she said to Al.

"Yeah, we have a nice one not too far from the house." Al replied.

"Yes, it will." She told Roy, before turning her attention back to Al. "We accept. What time do you want us down there?"

"Oh, I don't know." Apparently Al hadn't done very much planning before inviting them over, "Noon? Does that work?"

"Perfectly." Riza assured him. "See you then."

"Bye!" Riza hung up the phone, and sighed. Roy pointed to her plate with his fork.

"Eat your sugar-coated death-waffle." He ordered. She looked at it, and poked it once with her own fork. Satisfied that it hadn't somehow been brought to life when she wasn't looking, she took another bite. "Is something wrong?" Roy asked.

"I'm not a very big fan of swimming." Riza confided.

"You can't swim?" He said incredulously. She shook her head.

"I can – I just don't like to." She said, shrugging, "I just never saw the allure in it, I guess."

"Well, if the Flame Alchemist can swim, so can you." Roy said, as though that was the end of the matter. Riza decided to just let the subject drop, and turned back to her waffle.

* * *

"We're here!" Roy announced loudly, "Now where's this so-called swimming hole?" No one answered. Probably because they hadn't even knocked on the door yet. Instead of asking, Riza just ignored the overly eccentric general, and rang the doorbell. Ed opened it a moment later, and gave a grin to Riza and a glare to Roy. 

"We're just waiting on Winry." He said. "Come on in."

They entered the house to find Winry packing various things into a rather large picnic basket. Al was holding the basket, and he waved to Roy and Riza, nearly dropping it.

"Hello! Are you two wearing your suits?" He asked, eyeing them both. Roy nodded.

"I am, and I assume Riza is too, unless she's planning on skinny-dipping…?" She glared, and Roy squeaked and tried to hide behind Al. "I was only kidding! Please don't hurt me!" Ed laughed.

"Man, she has you _whipped_."

"Ed!" Winry snapped, "Be nice!" Ed hung his head.

"Yes, ma'am." Roy barked a laugh.

"_Now_ who's whipped, Fullmetal? Eh?" Winry rolled her eyes.

"Ok, I'm done packing; we can go now." She announced, shutting the lid on the picnic basket. Al fairly staggered under the weight.

"Umm, do we really need all that?" Riza asked, surveying the large basket. Winry nodded emphatically and slid her hand into Ed's, causing him to turn bright red.

"With Ed's appetite, most definitely."

* * *

Riza tried to convince them that they should wait at least an hour after eating to swim, but to no avail. The three teenagers merrily stripped off their outer layers of clothing and jumped right into the swimming hole (with no small amount of blushing on Winry and Ed's part), while Roy and Riza sat on the bank. It was a decent-sized swimming hole; deep enough to jump in without fear of injury; indeed, there was a rope hanging off one of the other trees specifically for the purpose of swinging into the water. There were shallow areas as well, which was where Ed, Al, and Winry were, waist-deep in water and splashing each other. Roy yawned and stretched out on his back. 

"I don't know about you, Lieutenant, but I'm tired. And possibly still just a bit hung-over."

"Well, that's what you get for getting drunk." She scolded lightly, "I should think that you, of all people, would be somewhat more tolerant of alcohol than that." He shrugged.

"Eh, I drained half the bottle last night when you weren't looking. I think I'm holding up pretty well, considering." Riza frowned, but didn't say anything. "Has it been an hour yet?" Roy asked, half-joking. Riza checked her watch.

"It's been ten minutes."

"Good enough." He stood, and stripped off his shirt, before tossing it next to his shoes in the ground. Riza shook her head; it was definitely going to get wrinkled. She picked it up, and folded it, before placing it neatly on top of his shoes, so it wouldn't get dirty. He grinned.

"Go ahead and jump in, sir, but don't blame me when you get stomach cramps." She said. She couldn't help but look at his stomach ironically as she said it, and found her eye's lingering on her superior officer's very toned and well-muscled upper body. This simply wouldn't do, so she tore her eyes away, and glanced back towards the lake.

"Are you seriously going to wait an entire hour, Hawkeye?" He asked.

"If I decide to get in at all; I told you, I've never really been terribly fond of swimming."

"Why not?" She shrugged.

"I never had a use for it. Why are you so curious, sir?"

"Not everything has to have a purpose, Riza." He said, "Some things are just because. Swimming is just fun." She must have looked very unconvinced, because he held out his hand to her with a look that could, much as she hated it, only be described as 'charming'. "Come on, lieutenant."

Well, now it sounded like an order. And years of training dictated that Riza follow any orders issued to her by a superior officer. She reached out and took his hand, and he pulled her to her feet.

"I suppose it's all right for us to swim now. But get out of the water at the first sign of anything cramping up!" she warned. He chuckled, and she shed her own clothes, before following him into the water. The two of them waded in to where Ed, Winry, and Al were splashing around. Ed stared slightly.

"Wow, Riza, I didn't know you owned a bathing suit," He said, as his eyes wandered to places that made Riza's trigger finger itch. Roy frowned, but Winry made a noise like an angry cat and pounced on Ed, dunking him completely underwater. Al snickered.

"And I thought that Roy was going to be the first one to comment." He said. Roy glared.

"And what's that supposed to mean?"

"That you're having to work very hard to keep your eyes to yourself." Al said matter-of-factly.

"You—" Roy lunged, but Al ducked out of the way laughing merrily as though enrage-the-general were a game he played every day. Madness ensued from there, and the innocent splashes degenerated into a full-out water war. In all the confusion, Ed nearly succeeded in drowning Roy, but Riza noticed at the last moment and rescued her commanding officer abruptly.

"It's not nice to drown people." She lectured. Ed genuinely looked chastened.

"I'm sorry." He said. Riza looked at him for a moment, then at Roy.

"Well, perhaps just this once." She relented.

"INSUBORDIN-AAAGH!" Roy shouted, before Riza calmly placed her hands on his head and pushed him underwater. It was, she had to admit, a very freeing sensation to push your commanding officer underwater. So she did it again. And again.

In retrospect, she realized that it was probably not a very smart idea to try his patience like that. Goofy colonel though he may be, he was still the Flame alchemist. Who, apparently, did not appreciate being repeatedly shoved underwater by one of his subordinates - his right-hand woman, in fact. At the time, though, shoving him underwater over and over seemed simply like a fun way to pass the time.

She certainly did not expect him to flip her over his shoulder and into the water. And she also did not expect to inadvertently hit her head on a rock. And she definitely did not expect to immediately black out.

And once she woke up again, she did not expect to be staring into a pair of intense black eyes, with a mop of black hair dripping water onto her face.

"Sir?" She said. A look of relief passed over Roy's face, and he moved so that he was no longer leaning over her.

"She's awake!" He called to his left. He looked at her for a moment, lip trembling slightly, before bursting into tears and flinging himself on her in a giant hug. Riza felt herself blush profusely, her head throbbing painfully as she did so. "Oh Lieutenant Colonel I'm so glad you're alive!" He bawled, "I don't know what I would have done without you!"

"_Sir, this kind of physical contact is completely inappropriate!" _Riza finally managed to say. Roy stopped bawling, looked down, and turned bright red, as they were, in fact, in a rather compromising situation. They were both in bathing suits, with him practically lying on top of her, causing various parts of heir bodies to touch. Riza tried not to blush, but she was, after all, only human. And no human woman (or man, for that matter) with a half-naked Roy Mustang lying on top of them, could keep their composure for very long.

"I'm sorry about that, Hawkeye," He said, pulling away completely. Riza sat up to find that Ed, Al, and Winry were all gathered around.

"What happened exactly?" She asked, reaching her hand up to the spot on her head that hurt. It was slightly sticky, and when she pulled her hand away there was blood on her fingers. Not much blood, thankfully; it wasn't serious. Roy pressed something cool and wet to her head and dabbed at the wound.

"Well, Mr. Graceful there flung you into a rock." Ed said, jerking his thumb at Roy, who whimpered slightly.

"I'm sorreeeeeeee…." He said, hanging his head. "I didn't mean to! Really!"

"It was so cute how he screamed like a girl…" Winry said, "He was quite worried, you know."

"Yeah," Al said, "He was too busy flailing around to even think of getting you out of the water, so Brother had to do it. Don't worry; Winry made sure he didn't touch you anywhere inappropriate!" Al said it with such a childish grin that one would think he was only saying how much he liked swimming.

"Umm…" Was all Riza could manage. Ed slapped his brother upside the head.

"Al! You didn't have to say that!" Winry moved in front of them, hiding the quarrelling brothers from view.

"Anyway, we should probably get you back to the house. Granny's a surgeon, so she'll be able to tell if anything's seriously wrong. Can you walk?"

"Of course; there's nothing wrong with my legs." Riza said, standing. The world chose that moment to do a pirouette, and she sat right back down again. Concussion, she decided. She _did_ feel vaguely nauseous. Winry looked at her, eyes full of concern. Riza smiled casually. "I got a little dizzy." She explained.

"That isn't a good sign." Winry said. "Ed, will you carry her?" Ed blushed profusely as Al giggled over the mental image of Ed carrying Riza, who was at least a good couple inches taller than he was.

"I guess." He said.

"I'll do it," Roy said, offering Riza a hand. "I have to do something to stay in shape while on vacation! Carrying my Lieutenant Colonel up a hill ought to be a great exercise!"

* * *

"You know, Hawkeye, I normally don't say this to women, but you should lose some weight." _Thwap_. Riza slapped him in the back of the head. Not too hard though; he was, after all, carrying her. Piggyback. If anyone ever knew, her reputation would be down the drain. 

"How mean!" Al said, "And I bet it's all muscle, isn't it, Riza?" Riza shrugged.

"Probably. I don't know." She liked to believe it was, with the exception of a few areas where there was simply no muscle to be had. Her chest, for instance. Which was now pressed rather embarrassingly up against Roy's back. She blushed again, and hid her face on the back of his neck. He let out a very feminine giggle.

"That tickles!"

"I'm sorry Sir." They fell silent for a moment.

"Do you think we should stay here? I mean, if you have a concussion or something, you really shouldn't be traveling."

"Oh I'll be fine, really." Roy shook his head.

"Nope."

"No?"

"I'm calling Havoc when we get back to see if they can handle a few more days without their beloved flame alchemist."

* * *

"NO!" 

"No?"

"With all due respect, sir, get your ass back to Central ASAP." Havoc said firmly. "And bring the Second Lieutenant along. Even _with_ a concussion she'll be a huge help in keeping Scar under control. Hell, she'll shoot him full of lead the second he goes after you."

"Now what exactly are you implyi—"

"I have to go; unlike _some people_ I'm at work." Roy hung up, frustrated. He couldn't bring Riza back to central like this!

"What did he say?" Roy turned to find Riza standing behind him.

"He wants us back there right away. Geez, Central must be in a pretty sorry state…" Riza nodded.

"Ok. I didn't hit my head _too_ hard, so I should be fine." She looked at the clock, "It's nearly five; what do you want to do with the rest of the day? I'd actually rather like a nap." Roy sighed. This was not what he'd planned for their last day in Resembool. But, being Roy Mustang, he still managed to fit in some excitement.

"Ok, we'll go back to the hotel, sleep, and then…" He paused dramatically…"We'll go out to dinner!" She narrowed her eyes.

"Sir, the fraternization—" He waved a hand dismissively.

"How long has it been since you've been on a date, Lieutenant Colonel?" She thought a moment, which, in Roy's opinion, spoke for itself.

"I don't know. A year? Two? I don't have much fee time." Roy nodded.

"Exaaactly." He turned and walked into the next room to inform Winry and the others of their departure back to the hotel, leaving an utterly befuddled Riza standing there.

"Sir? That made no sense!" He re-emerged.

"Come on, Hawkeye; you need a nap."

"What do you mean 'exactly'?" But he didn't answer.

* * *

**Michi: Well, that sucked. Long but awful, and I apologize for that.**

**Roy: I think I may love you. Hawkeye…in a bathing suit….**

**Riza: No one ever said what _kind_ of suit!**

**Roy: I think it was a bikini….**

**Riza: It most certainly wasn't!**

**Michi: Well, because I'm sadistic, no one shall ever know. It will be one of the great mysteries of the world. Cults will form, trying to solve it, and then there will be a gigantic global puzzle, and many many chase scenes, and—**

**Riza: You seem to be confusing your mediocre fanfic with _The DaVinci Code_.**

**Michi:…oh. I thought that sounded familiar…**

**Note: The concussion thing…ohgodohgod where do I begin? Anyway, please to ignore that entire bit. Yes, I know that you're not supposed to nap after one, and also that after someone got a concussion, they wouldn't exactly be willing to go out on a date, but… for the sake of plot and my sanity, can we just never mention this again? Just pretend Hawkeye is superwoman and has magic healing powers or something…**


	3. Not A Date

**DISCLAIMER: Arakawa owns your mom. And also FMA. XD**

**WARNING: Vague spoilers-ish for the end of the anime, and also the end of _Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix_. Dunno how that happened. Sorry.**

**A/N: OK, things will definitely begin to pick up after this chapter. The end of this chapter, they get away from Resembool and head back to Central, where Scar, the subordinates, and yes, even Hakuro await them.**

**And now I will take a moment to explain why the timeline and sequence of events in my stories are so thoroughly screwed up.**

**In my little happy alternate universe, earth logic does not exist. The Elric brothers inexplicably have their bodies back (I've seen the end of the anime just recently. Oh my god. My quiet suburban neighborhood has never heard such an uproar. I was _pissed_, to say the least.) and Bradley has gone away to join Sirius Black in the Bahamas. I knew when I started writing UTR that he was keeled by Roy eventually, so I just omitted him. I did not, however, know that the form of government would change. So he was just replaced by his second-in-command; General Hakuro.**

**I have no real excuse for the suckness of this chapter other than the fact that I seem to do all my writing at ungodly hours of the night. I have no excuse for the obscenely long author's note other than the fact that I like to ramble. If I wouldn't end up very, very dead for it, I'd prolly just write pages and pages of author's notes.**

**------------------------------------------**

CHAPTER THREE: Not a Date

-------------------------------------------

Try as she might, Riza could not get Roy to elaborate any more on why he was so adamant on taking her out for dinner. Riza would not permit herself to think of it as a 'date'. It wasn't a date; that was against the rules, and somehow, _somehow_, she just knew that Fürher Hakuro would find out.

And then all hell would break loose.

She looked over at him as they walked back to the hotel, and sighed. She couldn't refuse to go out with him, though. Despite being ungrateful, it would just be a cold thing to do. And, to tell the truth, she quite wanted to see what it would be like to go on a date with her superior officer. There were, however, a few questions she wanted answered.

"Sir?" She said, breaking the silence. He looked over at her.

"Yes, Lieutenant Colonel?"

"Sir, if I agree to go out with you tonight, it wouldn't be a date, would it?" He shrugged.

"Maybe." Riza frowned slightly; He never _could_ just give a straight answer, could he? "Would you like it to be?" She sighed.

"_No_, sir. That would be against the _rules_."

" 'The rules' happen to be several hundred miles away, and preoccupied with a homicidal man who has head-exploding tendencies." He said. Did he sound slightly upset? Or was it just Riza's imagination? "I really doubt anyone will ever find out."

"Exactly." Riza said, "No one can ever know, date or not. Ok?" Now it was his turn to frown.

"Why not?"

"Because it would completely and utterly run my reputation." She said matter-of-factly. "No one would ever take me seriously again. And they would assume things."

"What kinds of things?" She raised her eyebrows.

"Well, what do you usually do with the women you date?"

"I see your point. All right; it wouldn't be terribly good for your reputation. So if you go with me, I promise that no other living soul will ever hear of it." He sounded oddly serious. She glanced over, and discovered that he looked serious as well. Did he really want to go out with her that badly?

"All right." She said, "But it's not a date, all right?"

-------------------------------------

_Knock knock_

"Lieutenant, are you ready for our date?" Roy called through the connecting door. Riza could tell from the tone of his voice that he derived a sort of smug satisfaction from referring to it as a 'date'.

"Not a date." She said shortly, opening the door, "And yes, I am." He grinned, seized her hand, and bent to kiss it, a motion that utterly baffled Riza. Did normal superior officers behave like this? She considered Hakuro and decided that the answer was most decidedly no.

"You left your hair down." He commented, touching it briefly. "It looks nice that way." For some odd reason, she found herself blushing. No. Not falling for the stupid lines.

"Thank you, sir." She said coolly. "So where exactly are we going?" Unfazed by her slightly icy demeanor, Roy simply offered her his arm and, when she took it, started walking.

"You'll see. It's not far from here, unless your shoes happen to be ridiculous." Of course he would have experience with girls with ridiculous shoes.

"We're walking, then?" He nodded.

"Why not? It's a beautiful night." She nodded.

"It is. All right, sir; lead on."

-----------------------------------

During the many years they had worked together, Roy had cultivated the ability to read Riza Hawkeye fairly well which, all things considered, was no small feat. To read her he had to watch her, and to watch her spelled certain death at the end of a gun if he was caught.

Tonight, however, she appeared to be too caught up in her own thoughts to notice that he was subtly watching her as they walked down the street. She looked…troubled. She looked troubled whenever he said the word 'date'.

This could be for a number of reasons, Roy decided. He _did_ have a reputation for being quite a playboy and going through several women in the space of only a few days. He wasn't stupid; he knew that if word of this excursion got out, her reputation would suffer. He _also_ knew that if word got out, anyone gossiping about her in the hearing of himself or his subordinates would likely not be able to gossip afterwards for a very long time. In short, they would get the living daylights beaten out of them.

Or perhaps she thought that he regarded all women as objects, which he didn't, certainly. Only the ones who acted like objects were to be treated as objects; all others were to be respected and sometimes feared. Liberated women were no joke. But it occurred to him that he had never shared this theory with her; had never, in fact, had the opportunity.

She should know by now that he didn't regarded her the same way he regarded all those women in all those bars, right? She ought to know by now that he thought of her in a completely different way? But how could she know, when even he wasn't quite sure how he thought of her? Subordinate, coworker, even friend, though it certainly was not a typical friendship.

Was that it?

He pushed his musings aside for later interpretation as they reached the restaurant. It was one of the petite, cozy, small-town restaurants that Roy liked but rarely got a chance to visit. They walked inside to a room flooded with candlelight, which contained only a few other couples. Riza was looking around appreciatively, and Roy could tell she liked it.

"How did you find this place?" She asked. Roy grinned.

"Ed mentioned it. He's planning on taking Winry here." Riza cocked an eyebrow.

"Since when do you and Edward talk without screaming?"

"Very rarely." Roy admitted, "But I suppose I must be a sort of father figure to him. Someone he may have arguments with at times, but secretly looks up to and admires and appreciates…"

"Really now?"

"Ok, so I heard him talking to Al about it and asked Al for the location after. But just because Ed thinks I'm a complete bastard doesn't mean that he doesn't like me!"

"If you say so, sir. Now come on, people are beginning to stare." They were only standing in the entranceway, having a conversation that couldn't make much sense to normal people. He allowed himself to be led to a table off into the corner of the room. They were soon visited by a waiter, offering them vast amounts of alcohol, and each selected a glass of wine. They were left to their own devices for a time. They sat in silence for a time before Riza, attempting to start a conversation, spoke.

"Did you assign someone to complete your paperwork during our vacation, sir?" She asked, remembering that she hadn't inquired as to the state of the paperwork before.

"Erm, no. should I have?" Riza sighed.

"Yes. I expect they've just been throwing it on the desk this whole time." She said. There would doubtless be mountains and mountains of the stuff waiting for them when they got back. And of course, Riza would be the one to sort through it all. Roy reached out and patted her on the shoulder.

"Don't worry—it won't be _that_ bad."

"Easy for you to say," She told him mildly, "You never do anything but sit in that chair of yours and practice facial expressions you think are particularly impressive."

"I keep up the morale of the subordinates!"

"By _killing_ them with _paperwork_?"

"I light things on fire!"

"Rarely."

"I—I give you a purpose in life!" She glared—how on earth did he ever get so full of himself?

"You most certainly do not." He was dangerously close to the truth now, which grated on her nerves a bit. She really needed to get out more.

"Oh come on, you know that if it wasn't for me, you would be wandering aimlessly, with nothing to work towards…" she might, she might not. But either way she wouldn't be the same without him. And didn't she spend nearly every minute of every day either nagging him, worrying about him, or thinking about him? But it wasn't obsession; it was her job. He noticed her unusual silence.

"Don't get mad, Lieutenant; I was just kidding." He said, "I know you have a life apart from the military." He thought a moment, "Though if this is the first date you've been on in years, possibly not." His tone was entirely teasing, so she didn't feel the need to shoot him.

"Speaking of this 'date', as you insist on calling it—"

"Because that's what it is."

"No. Anyway, about tonight—"

"It _is_ a date. You know, man, woman, wine, moonlight, a walk through the starlit park, a hotel room, the left pocket of my black coat—" She cut him off abruptly, as she knew that it would only degenerate from there.

"My point is, call it what you want, but—"

"A date?"

"If. You. Want." She said through gritted teeth. "But no one at the office can _ever know_ or we'll get in _so much trouble_."

"No one pays attention to those silly fraternization rules! Shiezka went out with Havoc a few weeks ago?"

"Oh good lord. Really?"

"Yup. And according to her, he was a perfect gentleman. And they don't care who knows."

"That's completely different." She ticked off points on her fingers to illustrate, "One, they actually are romantically involved, while we are simply two friends going out to dinner. Two, I don't know if you've noticed, but people have been expecting this for years. There are betting pools, sir. Several. Betting pools."

"Why do you care what they think?" Joking Paperwork-Avoidance Roy was gone now, replaced by his polar opposite, Serious Roy. His body language had even changed completely. He was leaning forward slightly, looking at her intently. She hated it when he did that. It was as though he could and did see right through her.

"I'll do your paperwork, I'll make your excuses, I'll even organize your office supplies," She said, not looking at him, "but I _will not_ become another of your one-night stands." She chanced a glance at him, only to find that he too was looking away.

"Not you, Riza." He said softly, causing her to jump slightly, "Never you."

-------------------------------------

"Are we really gong to walk through the park?" Riza asked as they exited the restaurant. Roy nodded.

"Of course. It's what people normally do on dates."

"Sir, I have been on quite a few dates, and not everyone is that cliched."

"Then the men you were with were obviously complete idiots to not know that the way to a woman's heart is through a moonlit stroll in the park. You see, men _say_ that they take women on walks to be romantic, etc., but it's really just an excuse to get the woman alone." Riza nodded.

"In that case, these parkgoing men must all, in fact, be filthy perverts." He only grinned broadly and offered her his arm. She took it and they walked along a path that led through the park. Riza chuckled.

"What?"

"Oh nothing. Just wondering what the people back at the office would say."

"They wouldn't say anything if they saw us; they wouldn't recognize you."

"Probably not." She admitted. "But remember what you promised. They can't ever know."

"Of course not." He said offhandedly. The walked in silence for a while longer.

"So I'm curious," Riza said, "Once these parkgoing men have got the woman alone, what do they do then?"

"Well if the man in question happens to be a filthy pervert—"

"Most men are."

"—then he'll try to make a move on her. If he's a gentleman, he won't."

"Gentlemen are, in my experience, a myth." Riza said flatly. Roy looked at her in surprise, and for a moment felt the urge to murder whoever had gone on a date with her and not acted like a perfect gentleman.

"Really?"

"Yes." Her tone booked no room for argument. "Anyway, what other people do on strolls in the park is their business. What exactly are _we_ doing here?"

"Walking."

"Well, yes, but what—"

"Don't worry about anything else. You don't seem to grasp the concept that the purpose of a date is to spend time with someone because you enjoy their company. And I don't know, but I am definitely enjoying yours." This blunt statement baffled Riza. Wasn't Roy used to impossibly gorgeous women who fawned over him and thought he was amazing? Granted, Riza thought he was amazing, in her own way, but it was a much more subdued sort of awe. Less of a 'ooh, he's a hero of the Ishval rebellion and also dead sexy' amazement than a simple wonder of the fact that their lives should seem so inexplicably connected.

"I'm enjoying yours too, sir." She confessed. _It's what frightens me, a little. Trying to stay in the lines._ "But really, this isn't what you normally do on dates, is it?"

"Well, no." He said smiling, "I confess, I talk with the women I 'date' but not about anything terribly important. I generally can't be bothered. To be blunt, we'd normally be back at my or her house by now." Riza nodded; she had figured as much. Known it, rather, from the scattered bits of conversation she'd heard among the other subordinates.

"I'm guessing you have no real desire to marry, then?" He looked at her.

"What makes you think that?"

"If you never date women you can stand having a conversation with, you're never going to find a woman you would be willing to spend the rest of your life with. So, logically, if you don't date women you could be serious about, you must not really want to be serious. Right?" He shrugged noncommittally.

"I suppose. I hadn't thought about that much." He checked his watch, "We'd better go change and get our luggage out of the hotel; our train back to Central leaves in an hour."

The walk back to the hotel was a quiet one. Not because either of them was particularly subdued or lost in thought, but because it was late, they were getting tired, and they really didn't need to talk. They didn't talk much in the office; she would diligently finish her work while he would diligently ignore his, and then she would pull out a book and read, until it became obvious that he would never get his done on time and she had to help. Then she would lecture, while he half-listened, lazily signing paperwork. At this point, they could probably communicate solely through significant glances. They didn't however, because each would miss the sound of the other's voice.

Riza changed out of the dress she had been wearing into more normal clothes, and packed the dress into her bags, which were already neatly packed and sitting next to the door. She sighed, and sat down on top of the bed, and propped her elbows on her knees, and her chin in her hands. Not a very Hawkeye-ish pose, but right now Riza was feeling confused and not at all like the businesslike First Lieutenant Hawkeye that the subordinates knew and feared.

This was definitely a problem.

Riza needed control over her life. It wasn't fair that she should feel a certain way without first weighing the options and consequences and then _choose_ to feel that way. It was annoying and Riza didn't like it. She never had, particularly when she had been in her adolescent years and her emotions had often decided to do strange things without informing her. She had thought that she was done with that. She was, after all, a grown woman.

Who was falling for a grown man?

_No_, she decided, _I don't have time for that. He doesn't, and we don't. And I don't much fancy the idea of being court-marshaled for fraternizing._ Her thoughts were cut off by Roy knocking on the dividing door and then opening it and sticking his head into the room.

"All packed?" He asked. She stood and nodded.

"All packed. Are you?"

"Yeah." He opened the door completely, revealing his suitcases. "I called a car to take us to the train station." She smiled.

"Great. I didn't feel much like walking in the dark." She grabbed her suitcases, and headed out the door, Roy following behind.

------------------------------------

"What do you intend to do about Scar?" Riza asked. They had been sitting on the train for twenty minutes or so now. It was completely dark, and the train was nearly empty. They were sitting in the corner, across from each other and next to the window. It was completely dark, as it was rather late by now. Every once and a while there would be a cluster of lights that would zoom past the window, and then all would be dark again.

"I'm not sure." Roy confessed. "I'll have to see what exactly is going on. There's probably not much we _can_ do, judging from my past experiences with Scar. If he doesn't want to be found, it's going to be pretty damn hard to catch him." Riza nodded.

"I thought so. But you're going to try anyway, aren't you?" he chuckled.

"You know me too well. Yes, I am. I can't just let him continue to get away with killing state alchemists. Hell, if the opportunity presents itself, I'll probably go after him myself."

"And I'll go with you." She said, matter-of-factly. He sighed.

"All right." He yawned, "I'm more tired than I thought. It was a long day."

"It was. Particularly since you insisted on dragging me out for most of the evening." He sat up straight.

"I—you looked like you were having fun!" Riza immediately felt bad; he sounded almost distressed.

"I did."

"Maybe once the Scar thing in Central has settled down..."

"Maybe what, sir?" He hesitated.

"Never mind." He stretched out on the seat he had been sitting on. "Good night, First Lieutenant." Riza decided to let the subject drop.

"Good night, Sir."

--------------------------------

**Ending A/N: Sorry to bore you with another one, but I'd just like to apologize again for this chapter. I think my writing style might be changing a little bit, which accounts for the wonkiness and leagues of purple prose. I have, after all, only been writing for ...five years now? Jeez. Time flies. Anyway, I'm maturing and so is my writing (hopefully).**

**Also, I have no idea as to when the next chapter will be out. I wrote this one in the stolen hours after I got home from band camp and before I collapsed from sheer physical exhaustion. Baritones, you see, are _heavy_. So you see, I hurt all over and have a book and a half left on my summer reading list. **

**Review please, but no flames. I don't like flames. They make me sad. Ta-ta!**


	4. Undercover Work

**DISCLAIMER: If it were mine there would so be more royai. **

**Chapter Four **

**A/N: Uhmmm... for all further purposes of the story, Roy is a colonel. Because I really don't even remember what I have him as in the rest of this. Sorry for the wait, everyone! I had very nearly given up on finishing this story at all, but then I found myself browsing some Royai fics and well.. I felt the urge to write.

* * *

**

Riza woke up to the ringing of her alarm clock, as she usually did. Today, however, rather than shutting up and getting up to shower as she usually did, she groggily groped for it, only succeeding to knock it off her bedside table and onto the floor. Where it continued to trill at her incessantly. Swearing like a sailor with a stubbed toe, she grabbed the clock and sat up, before switching it off. Six 'o clock was far, far too early to be awake.

Her train, much to her dismay, had had unexpected technical problems, causing them to be delayed by about two hours. As a result of this, she didn't actually get home until two in the morning, and didn't fall asleep until two-thirty. The lack of sleep combined with the exhaustion of traveling made waking up at this hour seem positively criminal.

Nevertheless, she forced herself to stand up, collect her belongings, and walk to the bathroom to shower. Maybe it was the sleep-deprivation talking, but she had a feeling that this was going to be a particularly trying day.

* * *

Upon entering the office in Central for the first time in over a week, Riza found that her theory about paperwork pileup had been distressingly wrong. Instead of a mountain of late, unfinished, unnoticed paperwork, there was, in fact, a desk. A very nice desk, she noted; possibly made of mahogany. It didn't occur to her to be horrified by the fact that in all her years working with him, she had never seen the top of Roy's desk this clean.

"You did some cleaning, I see," She noted, depositing her bag next to her desk. Fuery looked up from the game of cards he had been playing with Falman and Breda, and grinned.

"We had some extra time on our hands," He explained, "And the colonel's desk was something of a disaster." Riza nodded, smiling.

"I think he'll like it." Havoc stood up, and stretched, "I'm going for a coffee run - who wants some?"

"I do," Riza said, "Our train was delayed and we didn't get in until two - I'm going to need all the help I can get to remain focused today." Havoc winced.

"Ouch, two a.m.? That would explain why the colonel hasn't shown yet," However, showing impeccable timing, as usual, Roy walked into the office, carrying his bag and looking as though he hadn't slept in days. For such a handsome man, he didn't wear exhaustion well. He grunted and sat down. And looked at his desk, and grunted again.

"Do you like it, sir?" Fuery asked.

"Nngh." He didn't look like he had shaved, either. Havoc nodded.

"Right, well I'll get that coffee." Riza raised an eyebrow in Roy's direction.

"Sir, don't tell me you pulled an all-nighter?" She knew that expression all too well. From those nights when he stayed in the office working too late, and his thought process had degenerated into 'Well better to just stay awake than have to wake up in the morning,'.

"No," He said, "I took a nap around six." Riza picked up a pencil and began filling out a form. "I was doing research all night. About Scar and that damn tattoo of his." Riza nodded. Of course he would forgo sleep the day before his return to work to look up obscure alchemy rituals, and transmutation circles. Havoc returned with the coffee, and Roy practically chugged his, before standing up.

"Well," He said, "I'm off to see the Führer."

"Sir," Riza began, "Does that mean you found something? In your research?" He shook his head.

"Not a thing." He confessed, "But something has to be done."

* * *

"Mustang, I don't have time for this." Hakuro said, eyeing Roy over the large stack of paperwork he was working his way through. "In case you hadn't noticed, I'm up to my eyeballs in paperwork; the entire office is."

"That may be true, Sir, but State Alchemists are dropping like flies; someone has got to get out there and figure out what the hell is going on." Hakuro nodded.

"Someone will. We've got plenty of Alchemists to tackle the job. No one less could possibly handle the job. You've got to fight fire with fire, after all." Hakuro was no alchemist. He couldn't know how deadly Scar's arm was.

"Yes, but none of them are experienced with dealing with Scar." Roy pointed out.

"And?"

"I am."

"Out of the question." Hakuro said, without so much as glancing at Roy. He had gone back to his paperwork. "We need you too much here. You are an authoritative figure. It's not your job to go chasing mass murderers through the streets of Central."

"Sir—"

"You are dismissed." Roy bowed, hiding a frown, before turning and walking out of the office.

* * *

"So, First Lieutenant, how was your vacation?" Fuery asked into the silence that had descended on the room. Riza looked up from her paperwork and smiled at him.

"It was very nice," She replied. "I haven't has a vacation in quite a while." Havoc raised an eyebrow.

"Really only nice?" She nodded.

"Yes. I got to see Edward, Alphonse, and Winry again, which was lovely. And Resembool is a great place for relaxation." Havoc nodded; somewhat impatiently, she thought. "Second Lieutenant, is something wrong?" She asked. He shook his head.

"No of course not; I'm glad you two had fun." Was it just her, or did he put an extra emphasis on 'two'? Well, if he did, she chose to ignore it, and instead turned her attention workwise, until a very agitated Colonel marched through the door, all traces of tiredness shrugged off.

"What happened, sir?" Riza asked. Roy flung himself into his chair and glowered.

"Hakuro doesn't seem to realize what he's getting himself into." He said. "The only people he thinks are fit to confront scar are the lower-level alchemists. The exact people he's targeting. I suggested that I might be of use, but he claims I'm more needed here, with this damn paperwork!" He glared at the paperwork intently, as though somehow the power of his hatred for it would cause it to burst into flames.

"He is right though - we can't spare you." He opened his mouth to protest, but she held up a hand, getting an idea. "If you're out in the field, Scar will be sure to hear about it - no offense intended, but your alchemy is quite original. However, if you were to send someone more ... nondescript out to do your dirty work, perhaps someone who isn't even an alchemist, you have a far better chance of getting the information you need." He shook his head.

"No."

"Sir, you don't need me here to do desk work. You have four other perfectly capable subordinates, and you have Hakuro breathing down your neck to make sure you complete your work. I'm not an alchemist, so he won't be looking for me." Roy shook his head again.

"No, First Lieutenant, I won't allow it."

"And why not?"

"It's extremely dangerous. He may not be after you directly, but if you get in his way, he won't hesitate to destroy you." She shrugged.

"If he can get close enough to use that arm of his." Something in her eyes glinted coldly, and she pulled out one pistol from her belt, "I don't intend to let him."

* * *

It was late afternoon in Resembool, and the sun was just beginning to set. Ed and Winry sat outside on the grass, watching it. It was a very clichéd way to spend an evening, and Ed had told Winry that when she ambushed him with a proposition that they sit outside and watch the sunset. She had ignored this, and proceeded to drag him outside. She had something she wanted to talk to him about.

"Ed," She said suddenly. He turned to look at her.

"Yeah?"

"How long do you think it will be until you join the military again?" He blinked, and sat up straighter.

"What d'you mean?" He asked, "I quit, remember? I quit so that I could stop running around all the time and stay here with you." He watched her expression searchingly, "Why?" Winry sighed.

"You're getting restless. I can tell." She said it matter-of-factly. She grinned at the shocked look on his face, "Ed, you're eighteen years old - I can hardly expect for you to retire just so you can be here with me." Ed didn't even try to argue.

"Winry—I—It's not that I want to be someplace else, ..." She nodded.

"I know. You've been searching for the stone for the past seven years. I couldn't expect you to just stay here forever. You're not used to being in one place." She sighed and leaned back, propping herself up on her hands. "It's all right, though. At least now I know for sure you'll come back."

* * *

Riza wore her normal, average civilians clothing to work the next day. She was there only long enough to check in with Roy, be briefed by Hakuro, and collect Havoc, who was going to accompany her. Personally she didn't think it was entirely necessary for him to some along - after all, this was only Scar. Not a homunculous. Her bullets would serve her just fine alone- but she didn't argue. Havoc was a smart man, and great with a gun to boot.

An hour later, she found herself sitting in the corner of a seedy bar on the Wrong End of Central, listening for gossip. Havoc was elsewhere - where, exactly, she wasn't certain, but he was doing the same thing she was - collecting information. As she pretended to take a sip of the bad beer she had purchased, she overheard snippets of conversation from the next table. Something about Scar, and his call for potential... followers? To meet him in a place called the Cave.

Riza frowned. Scar? Followers? From her previous experience with Scar, he had never seemed the type to ask for help, or for acceptance. But maybe he had changed his mind, and decided greater force as necessary this time. Riza set down her beer and stood, before sauntering the short way to the other table. She was glad she had changed from her clothes to some rather more appropriate (though inappropriate in any other situation) clothes. A tank, a skirt, and a jacket, with some worn ankle boots, all hastily purchased in a secondhand clothing shop. And she had worn her hair down, and was wearing a pair of sunglasses she always wore when in places like these. She placed her hands on the table, and leaned just a little bit.

"I heard you talking about Scar," She said. They exchanged glances, as though wondering whether she was a friend or an enemy. "I'm interested in what he has to say - do you know where the Cave is?" The biggest one - obviously the leader - stood, after looking her up and down. She couldn't tell whether he was sizing her up or just taking a look, but she must have passed the test, whatever it was.

"If you're really interested, follow me," He said, "The meeting starts soon," Riza nodded, and followed him out of the tavern. Too bad there was no time to find Havoc, but he could take care of himself, and so could she. Besides, she was only going to listen to see what he was up to, and then slip out when she got the chance.

_If I don't get the chance..._well, there was always the handgun attached to the inside of her coat. She could have it out in less than a second. It wasn't as comfortable as the leg-holster she favored, but with this skirt, there was no way of hiding a gun. She was lucky it was still loose enough to run in, if it came to that.

He led her out into the streets, and down an alley. It looked to be a dead end, and she tensed up a little, looking in the shadows for possible cronies, there to help him if he thought she'd heard too much. But he only led her to a door at the end of the alley. The door led downwards, through a maze of tunnels and stairs. Riza did her best to remember which ways to turn to leave, but there were so many.

Finally, one last turn brought them to what appeared to be a large underground ampetheatre. Large, but not gigantic - it wasn't large enough for masses and masses of people. As it was there was a group of people clustered around the stage. The man led Riza to the side, next to a set of stairs that would lead upwards to the stage.

"It's about to start," He said, pointing up towards the stage, before merging with the rest of the crowd. They all seemed to be of the lower-class, shady sort, although to be fair, some looked like they were just down on their luck, rather than unpleasant. Suddenly, the room dimmed, as several lanterns lining the sides of the room were put out. Only the stage remained glowing. A man strode out, and raised his arms high. The audience cheered. Riza frowned slightly.

He was smaller than she remembered him being. And though the tattoo on his arm was there, it looked different, somehow... She worked her way closer to the front of the stage and peered up, confirming her suspicions.

This man was not Scar at all.

* * *

**A/N part deaux: Well, rather a short chapter this time, but it just sort of felt like it wanted to end there. So you see, I am alive if sort of ... absent. Now that I'm writing it again, I'll try to update soon! Also yah, is sucky and the last half is totally rushed. I know this. But the next one will be better.**


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